[Modern Family] Ch: 10 [Conversation: The Dunphy sisters] (Patreon)

AN: Too many back-to-back dialogues. So, hope it was good. Fingers crossed.

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"So the ghosts finally returned your phone?" Alex's voice came through the speaker with enough dry amusement that Jason immediately winced.

Jason shook his head. "Yeah, I probably deserve that one."

"You probably deserve several more."

Jason laughed and sank deeper into his chair. "That's fair. Honestly, I should probably explain myself before the charges get upgraded."

"I'm listening."

Jason rubbed the back of his neck. "I'd love to give the excuse that I've been busy with work. Streaming, recording videos, editing, planning content, researching games, trying to build a channel from scratch. All that stuff."

Alex was quiet for a moment before saying, "The annoying thing is that actually sounds believable."

"Right?" Jason said with a nod. "The problem is everybody uses that excuse. It's overrated. So instead of apologizing and giving you a speech about productivity, I'd rather skip to the important part."

A hint of curiosity entered her voice.

"And what's the important part?"

Jason looked toward the ceiling for a second before answering.

"I want to invite you to lunch."

The silence on the other end lasted long enough that he checked the screen to make sure the call hadn't dropped.

When Alex finally spoke, her tone sounded somewhere between amused and incredulous. "You're asking me out after disappearing for over two weeks and expect me to say yes?"

Jason laughed.

"No, that's not what I'm doing."

"It sounds exactly like what you're doing."

"I'm inviting you to lunch."

"That's usually how dates start."

Jason stood up and began pacing around the room. "Okay, first of all, this isn't a date."

Alex let out a skeptical hum. "Uh-huh."

"I'm serious."

"Sure you are."

Jason pointed accusingly at the phone even though she couldn't see him. "Listen, this is simply my way of making up for the whole ghosting situation."

"The whole ghosting situation?"

"Yes."

"You make it sound like a natural disaster."

"Well, from your perspective, I vanished without a trace."

Alex laughed despite herself.

"That's actually true."

"Exactly. So I'm trying to fix that."

She remained quiet for a second before saying, "And if I agree?"

He replied, "Then we have lunch, talk for a bit, and hopefully you stop assuming I was another victim in this haunted house."

She raised an eyebrow, "And if I don't agree?"

Jason shrugged. "Then you'll spend the rest of your life wondering how good the food was."

Alex snorted. "That's your sales pitch?"

"No. My sales pitch is much worse."

"Oh, God."

Jason smiled.

"Also, if this works out..."

He paused deliberately.

Alex immediately caught it and asked, "If this works out, what?"

"Maybe next time we can go on a proper date," Jason replied.

The silence that followed felt very different from the previous ones.

Jason could practically hear Alex processing that sentence.

When she finally spoke, her voice sounded softer than before.

"You're surprisingly direct."

"I find it saves time."

"It also gets you into trouble."

"That's future Jason's problem."

A laugh escaped her.

Then another brief silence settled between them.

"So let me get this straight," Alex said eventually. "You're asking me to lunch."

"Yep."

"It's not a date."

"Correct."

"But if things go well, you're hoping the next one is."

"Pretty much."

Alex shook her head. "You're full of confidence, aren't you?"

Jason didn't even hesitate. "Yeah."

That immediate answer made her laugh again. There wasn't an ounce of arrogance behind it. Somehow that made it worse. "You know most people at least pretend to be humble."

"Most people aren't me."

"Clearly."

Jason stood up and began to walk around the room. "Anyway, there's a seafood place I found with good reviews and a nice atmosphere. Plus no confirmed ghost sightings."

Alex rolled her eyes even though he couldn't see it. "You really planned this."

"I like food." He shrugged.

"That's not what I meant."

"I know."

Jason continued, "Tomorrow. Red-CrabsZ. Between one-thirty and two-thirty."

Alex frowned. "That's a weirdly specific time window."

"Because I'm not putting pressure on you."

She remained silent while listening.

"I'll be there during that hour. If you show up, great. We'll have lunch."

Alex asked, "And if I don't?"

Jason replied almost instantly, "Then I'll order some crabs and shrimp, eat by myself, question my life choices for a few minutes, and go home."

Alex laughed so hard she nearly dropped the phone. "That's seriously your plan?" She asked.

"Yep."

"That's ridiculous."

"I know."

"And you're still sure I'm showing up?"

Jason smiled. "Yeah."

Alex sighed dramatically. "You are impossible."

"I've heard worse."

"I'm sure you have."

The conversation slowed after that.

Neither of them seemed particularly eager to hang up.

Finally, Alex spoke again. "Maybe."

Jason blinked. "Maybe?"

She said, "Maybe I'll show up."

A grin spread across his face. "See? I told you."

"Don't get excited. I said maybe."

"Sure."

"I mean it."

"Of course."

Alex could hear the smile in his voice.

"You're insufferable."

"So I've been told."

Another silence followed, comfortable this time.

Eventually Alex sighed. "Well, maybe I'll see you tomorrow then."

Jason stopped walking and said, "Tomorrow."

Alex smiled, "Don't forget the 'maybe.'"

"Haha. Bye, Alex."

"Bye, Jason."

The line disconnected a second later.

He lowered the phone and stared at the screen for a moment. Then his eyes went toward the unread messages sitting beneath Alex's conversation.

Haley.

There were a lot of them.

Jason stared at the notification count.

"...Well," he muttered.

A second passed.

"Oh, this is gonna be a problem."

Jason stared at Haley's conversation for several long seconds before finally opening it. He sat down on the chair.

The message list just kept going.

Haley: Did the haunted house eat you?

Haley: If you're dead, I'm gonna be really sad.

Haley: Grandpa says the lawn service showed up yesterday, so you're probably alive.

Haley: Alex says you're busy.

Haley: I think you're avoiding us.

Haley: Mostly her.

Haley: Maybe me too.

Haley: Rude.

Haley: Wow.

Haley: Okay.

Haley: I'm officially offended.

Jason rubbed his forehead. "Yep. That's definitely Haley."

A few newer messages sat underneath.

Haley: I bet you forgot your phone exists.

Haley: If that's actually what happened, I'm going to be so annoyed.

Haley: You're lucky you're cute.

Jason laughed.

"That helps."

He quickly started typing.

Jason: Before I defend myself, I need you to know that your last message just saved my life.

Three dots appeared almost immediately.

Haley: YOU'RE ALIVE.

Jason: Barely.

Haley: OH MY GOD.

Haley: I KNEW IT.

Haley: Alex owes me ten bucks.

Jason blinked.

Jason: You bet money on whether I was dead?

Haley: No.

Haley: We bet on whether you were ignoring us.

Jason: Somehow that feels worse.

Haley: Because it is worse.

Jason smiled and continued typing.

Jason: In my defense, I've spent the last two weeks streaming, recording videos, editing, planning content, researching games, and slowly losing my sanity.

Haley: That's actually believable.

Jason: Thank you.

Haley: Still rude though.

Jason: Fair.

Haley: Very rude.

Jason: Also fair.

Haley: Extremely rude.

Jason: Alright, alright. I get it.

Several seconds passed before another message arrived.

Haley: Wait.

Haley: Did you seriously ignore both of us equally?

Jason laughed.

Jason: Equal opportunity disappointment.

Haley: That's the dumbest thing you've said so far.

Jason: Give me time.

Haley: No thanks.

Jason leaned back in his chair while reading through the conversation. Haley somehow managed to type exactly how she talked. Every message felt energetic, dramatic, and completely impossible to ignore.

Another notification appeared.

Haley: So.

Haley: How are you making this up to me?

Jason smiled.

Jason: I figured complimenting your incredible beauty would be a good start.

The reply arrived almost instantly.

Haley: Continue.

Jason shook his head.

Jason: Your smile was the first thing I noticed at the cafe.

Haley: Obviously.

Jason laughed and typed while leaning back in his chair, already picturing her smug little expression on the other end.

Jason: I’m serious. You walked in complaining about Alex’s clothes, then smiled like you owned the place. Pretty hard to ignore.

Haley: Okay, that was actually smooth.

Jason: I have rare moments.

Haley: Very rare, apparently.

Jason: Fair. Also, you’re genuinely pretty. Like dangerous levels of pretty. The kind where a guy forgets his sandwich exists for a second.

The three dots appeared, vanished, then appeared again. Jason grinned at the screen, knowing he had landed that one properly.

Haley: Wait. You forgot your sandwich?

Jason: Emotionally, yes. Physically, I still ate it.

Haley: Good. I don’t date men who waste food.

Jason paused with his thumb over the keyboard, then smiled wider.

Jason: Date, huh?

Haley: I SAID WHAT I SAID.

Jason leaned forward, elbows on his knees, enjoying himself more than he expected.

Jason: Then I should also mention that you looked cute when you were pretending not to compete with Alex.

Haley: I was not competing.

Jason: Yes, you were.

Haley: Okay, maybe a tiny bit.

Jason: Tiny, sure.

Haley: Shut up, haunted house boy.

Jason chuckled softly and glanced toward the window, where the afternoon light stretched across the floor.

Jason: For the record, I liked talking to you too. You’re fun, chaotic, and somehow made perfume sound like a war strategy.

Haley: Because it is.

Jason: See, that confidence is exactly what I mean.

Haley: Keep going. You’re doing great.

Jason shook his head, smiling as he typed the next message.

Jason: You’re beautiful, Haley. Pretty face, cute smile, scary shopping energy, and somehow still funny enough that I almost choked on a slushy.

For once, her reply took longer.

Haley: Okay.

Haley: That was really cute.

Jason: I told you I had rare moments.

Haley: I’m still mad.

Jason: Reasonable.

Haley: But slightly less mad.

Jason: Progress.

Haley: You still owe me.

Jason stared at the message for a moment, then glanced toward Alex’s chat. Tomorrow’s lunch already sat in his mind like a blinking warning sign, and Haley clearly wasn’t going to let him escape without a price.

Jason: Okay. How can I make it up to you?

Haley thought for a moment before typing.

Haley: Long drive in your car.

Jason: Okay. Done. 

Haley: Tomorrow?

Jason: Sorry, I'm kinda busy tomorrow. How about this Sunday?

Haley took some time before replying.

Haley: Sure. And don't you dare ghost me again.

Jason: I wouldn't dream of it.

Haley: Bye, J.

Jason: Bye, H.